A hot start wasn't enough for the Âé¶¹AV Rockets as they fell 5-3 to the Victoria Royals on Wednesday night, March 19.
After a scoreless first period, Hiroki Gojsic opened the scoring with his 20th goal of the season 5:13 into the frame, assisted by Dawson Gerwing and Hayden Paupanekis.
Just over two minutes later, Levi Benson doubled Âé¶¹AV's lead, netting his 10th. His goal was helped by Jakub Stancl and Eli Barrett.
Being down 2-0 all of a sudden got Victoria in gear as they responded with three goals, included two from Cole Reschny to lead 3-2 after two periods.
Just 59 seconds into the third, Stancl knotted the game once again as he fired home a powerplay goal. His 21st of the campaign was assisted by Paupanekis and Will Sharpe.
The game remained tied until the 17:34 mark when Reggie Newman scored to give Victoria a 4-3 lead late in the contest.
Kenta Isogai added an empty net goal to secure the 5-3 win for the Royals.
Rhett Stoesser made 32 saves on the night for Âé¶¹AV, who fall to 17-43-4-2 on the year. With the loss, the team has lost 10 straight games and 25 of their last 26.
This weekend is the final weekend of the WHL's regular season. Âé¶¹AV closes out their home schedule in their penultimate game of the year on Saturday night (March 22) as they welcome the Kamloops Blazers to Prospera Place. Puck drop is at 6:05 p.m. The following night, the Rockets will finish the season in Langley against the Vancouver Giants, with a 4 p.m. puck drop.